Most homeowners insurance policies come with some liability coverage, which provides protection from lawsuits that accuse a homeowner of causing damage or injury. The standard amount of liability coverage included in a home insurance policy, however, may not provide homeowners with as much protection as they’d like. Here are a few scenarios where the damage or injury caused could exceed the standard amount of liability coverage included in a home insurance policy. If you’d like additional protection against incidents like these, you may want to increase the liability coverage limits of your home insurance policy.
These Incidents May Not be Covered by Your Homeowners Insurance with the Standard Amount of Liability Coverage
(Whether a specific homeowners insurance policy’s liability protection would cover the following scenarios would depend on the particular policy’s terms and conditions. To find out exactly what incidents your policy covers, read the policy’s paperwork carefully.)
A Child Falls Down Your Stairs and Is Seriously Injured
Friends or family are visiting for the holidays, and they have a child with them. There are undoubtedly decorations scattered throughout your house, and there may be toys lying around. While playing, the child trips over a decoration or toy, and falls down the stairs. They suffer multiple injuries, some of which are serious.
Because the child was in your house and tripped over an object that you let remain near the stairs (even if you didn’t put the decoration or toy there yourself), you may be held responsible for the child’s medical treatment. If they hit their head or hurt their neck when they fell, the medical bills could add up to a large sum -- possibly more than the standard amount of liability coverage included in your home insurance policy.
Your Ball Hits Someone on the Golf Course
While golfing on one of New Jersey’s courses, you slice a drive badly. So badly that the ball flies way off course and hits another golfer. The ball strikes them in the head, and its force not only knocks them unconscious but leaves them in a coma.
Since you took the swing, you could be held responsible for the fellow golfer’s injury. In addition to their medical bills, you may also be sued for lost wages, and pain and suffering. The legal costs and settlement associated with such a lawsuit could easily exceed $100,000, if not much more. If your liability coverage only provides $100,000 worth of protection, you could be faced with a bill large enough to force many homeowners into bankruptcy.
Your Teenager Starts a Fire with a Firecracker
On the Fourth of July, your teenager lights a firecracker. Most firecrackers go off without incident, but this one flew through an open window in a nearby building and started a fire.
The owner of the building that caught fire, or their insurer, may come after you for the damage that was caused. It was, after all, your child who started the fire. The property damage, not to mention the legal costs of defending yourself, could easily reach seven figures and exceed standard liability coverage limits.
Have a Homeowners Insurance Agent Help You Get More Coverage
For help selecting an appropriate amount of liability coverage, contact a World Insurance Associates agent. Our independent agents will be able to help you consider the potential costs of these and other scenarios, so you can choose the right amount of liability coverage for you and your family. If you decide you want more protection than you have, an agent can help you increase your homeowners insurance policy’s liability limits. Often, adding more than the standard amount of liability coverage included with a policy doesn’t cost much at all.